1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a carrier for two-component developer, a two-component developer, an image forming method, and an image forming apparatus.
2. Related Art
As in electrophotography or the like, methods of visualizing image information through an electrostatic latent image are widely used in various fields. In the electrophotography method, an electrostatic latent image on the surface of a photoconductor (image holding member) is developed through a charging process, an exposing process, or the like with a developer containing a toner, and the electrostatic latent image is visualized through a transferring process, a fixing process, or the like.
The developer includes a two-component developer composed of a toner and a carrier, and a single-component developer in which a toner is used alone like a magnetic toner or the like. Of these developers, the two-component developer has features, such as good controllability, and has recently been widely used because the carrier shares functions, such as stirring, transporting, and charging of the developer, and is functionally separated as a developer.
Additionally, for example, those described in Patent Documents 1 to 5 are known as the carrier or the two-component developer.